Badges and pin-attaching means therefor



March 29, 1960 I.Iauu..u......"n....n..'l..

INVENTOR.

BADGES AND PIN-ATTACHING IVIEANS THEREFOR Louis W. Rosen, New York, Nar.

Application May 15, 1958, Serial No. 735,400

7 claims. (ci. 4o1.s)

My, invention relates principally to a badge commonly known as an identification bar, fashioned out of a singlev sheet of thin resilient material such as Celluloid, and to a common pin in combination therewith, and discloses certain improvements in the art in addition to those enumerated on the same subject in my pending application in the United States Patent Office, filed March 18, 1957, and bearing Serial No. 646,890, now abandoned. l

The object of these further improvements is to make it possible to use a common pin of uniform size and thickness for all of these badges, regardless of their dimensional variations. A further object is to have a device where the mounting of the pin could be made along any straight course and within very narrow confines, with particular benefit when -so accomplished .horizontally close to the top edge of the badge, in direct vision and right under the nose, so to speak, of one trying to adjust the same on to his garment. Another object, as a corollary to this top-edge mounting, is to gain thereby an un-` obscured space of practically the entire rear surface of any display card in the badge, whereon additional legends or other data may be shown to advantage or for handy` reference, such for instance as instructions or directions promulgated by a sponsor for the benefit of the wearer at a convention or the like, or, for that matter, any kind of advertisement. A further object is to provide a simple, inexpensive and foolproof means for actually locking the pin after attachment and synchronously enveloping its point under complete coverage, without exterior exposure of any portion of it whatsoever. A further object is to have the badge pressed tight against the fabric of the wearer and thus made firm and unshakable, in contrast to the wabbly condition that obtains in the use of the conventional crimped-pin which makes the badge stand out an appreciable distance from the fabric to which attached. Another object is toreduce to an absolute minimum the time required by an assembler to mount the attaching pin on to such badge, the disclosure here making it possible to effect such operation in a jitfy, even with the badge lying flat on the table and with no need for picking it up and fumbling with it for that purpose. Aside from such saving in labor, a further object is appreciably to reduce the cost in pin material, the common pin being about the cheapest there is. Not only is the. conventional crimped pin much more expensive but, withal, it has the following disadvantages: The depth of its structure compels the badge, as already mentioned, to

stand away from the garment an appreciable distance and thus in wabbly fashion; because of such bulk, the assembled badges with that type of pin take up an inordinate amount of space when packed in large `quantities for shipr ment;- special attention must be given in connection with such packing not to stack the badges too tight, for unless' they are kept suiciently apart interscratching will ensue because of the fact that the sharp point of the crimped pin is exposed even when locked, which is not so in the instant device; because of its awkwardness the crimped Pin requires greater manipulation for mounting the same ice on to a badge; its spreading design and necessary posi-v tioning away from any top-edge portion of the badge result inl obscuring a good portion ofthe rear surface of any display card that may bedesired Vfor' imprint thereon of any legend or advertisement; it must necessarily'be of sufficiently thick gauge to resist distortion on pressure ofv its shank portion toward engagement with the locking hook, which physical characteristic is in lcontrast to the for the same reason it can be as reasonablythin as wanted because no appreciable weight depends on it in connection with the badge proper. v

Other features of my invention and of the application thereof, and furtherdetails of my improvement and of the manner of constructing and operating the same will be set forth as this specification proceeds. It will be understood, however, that said invention is not limited to this particular disclosure, but is susceptible of many changes and modifications which may be made by those skilled in the art without Vdeparting from the spirit and scope of this invention.

For a more particular description of my invention, reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming part hereof, in lwhich t Fig. l is a rear elevationof my improved device, showing the location of the-pin in horizontal position on the tab portion of the badge and as it would appear when locked.

Fig. 2 is a viewtsimilar to that of Fig. l, but showing said pin vin unlocked position ready for mounting of the badge on to a garment or the like.

Fig. 3 is a view in horizontal cross section, taken along the line 3-,3 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows. f

Fig. 4 is a view in vertical crossv section, taken alongk Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the indicate similar parts.

Proceeding with my description, the badge or identiiiication bar is composed of a thin sheet of transparent resilient material folded crosswise at edge 1 into an outer wall 2 and an inner wall 3, between which walls is the resulting chamber 4 for the insertion of a card or the like therein for display purpose. When first creased, the position of the fold at edge 1 is such as to leave an extra length on what will follow as the outer wall 2, sutiicient to create the tab 5 folded crosswise at edge 6 and inwardly to afford a sort of pocket or retaining medium for insertion of the horizontal free edge portion of the inner wall 3 between the opposing surfaces of said tab and outer slots being in effect apertures restricted to such complemental width in relation to thediameter ofthe pinshank as will accommodate saidl shank snugly and permit it to slide or move only in a straight'course without lateral derivation for locking and unlocking purposes, it being noted that the alignment of fall of the parts on tab 5, as,V shown in Fig. 1, is such as to insureV only thatkind of movement. As can be further seen in Fig. 1, the pin is of such length as to leave a substantial portion of it Patented Mau.4 29,1960,

In my device, the mere sliding of the common pinY centrally located for'ttaching' purpose, while the remaining portion thereof inclusive of the head, functioning off center in relation tothe horizontal length of the tab, is utilized in keeping .the pin mounted for the, operational procedureofhlocking and unlocking the pin in connection with attachment ofthe badge to same fabric. The locking thereof is effectedA by pushing the pin `from the direction of its head to the 4extent that a predetermined portion thereof at .its opposite end will enter pointwise the aperture 11 directlyin its path and located in a portion of the elevation presented by the hollow mound 12 formed out of an outwardly directed depression in tab at that location. Upon I,such entry the underportion of the head? will edgewise, up to the bottom plane ofr the shank 8, synchronously snap into Vthe vertical `slot I3 under the surrounding tensionof the sheet material and thus prevent the pin from any further movement in either direction. In that position, the pin is positively locked in Aconnection,withany fabric to which the badge is attached, and,` furthermore, the pointed end thereof is then completely enveloped o r encased underneath said mound and shielded againstaccidental contact therewith by any person. In the V,course of this sliding movement for locking purpose, the headrofthe pin, because of its greater diameter with. relation to that of the shank, maintains in its edgewise position a pitch of the pin shank in such` direction whereby its pointed end, is so stressed against the opposing surface of the tab 5 as to make it impossible for such end to override the aperture 11 on such movement and thereby miss going through it. At the same time it is the tensionl energized by this pitch that serves synchronously to bring aboutVas aforementioned, the snappy entry of such pin head into the slot 13 for locking purpose, as shown in Fig. v3,7such entry in effect affording relief to such tension. To unlock the pin, the reverse movement is followed from that above described, which isaccomplished first `by a slight pickup, against the tension referred to, of that portion of the pin between the slot and its headed end so as to free the same from the vertical slotrl3, and then by sliding the pin toward the mound 14, fashioned in the same way as mound 12. This mound 14 is suggested as an optional backstop ore means of caution for cessation of tn ovement as soon as the pointed, end of the pin has through such sliding operation emerged from the aperture 141, for then the pin becomes unlocked and again ready for fastening purpose. However, this mound 14Yis not so` high as to prevent the `mounting of the pin from that direction through the slots 10 and 9, in the order named, the resiliency of the badge material being also slightly drawn upon for such adjustment. This backstop is not an element actually needed for locking or unlocking purpose, and accordingly it is not of vital importance to one using ordinary caution not to retract the pin too far when a detachment of the badge is desired. On the other hand, this mound 14 could additionally be provided witha vertical slot similar to `13 for positive locking of the pin as at 13, or else the same result could be accomplishedby provision of this additional slot Valone in place of said mound. i Y i Apropos of this reference to slot 13, it might be noted that, in edgewisely resting in said slot as shown in Figs. 1 and 3, the pin head is so oriented that the top of it abuts the contiguous edge of said slot, while the beveled or under portion of said head leading to the shank is adjacent to the opposite edge of said slot. AThis is functionally very important, becauserthe first described contact is a guard against the one real danger to be avoided, namely an accidental runlocking of the Apin and the pos,- sible losing lof the badge. T hatprotection is here amply covered because it is thepractically at surfaceofthe head top that isfpitted V'against Vthe edge referred to and so held under a downwardly directed tension against the pin shank, under whichcircrumstance there is no possibility of the pin gliding over said edge and in turn paving ther 4 way for accidental disengagement of the locking means by unchecked movement of the pin in direction away from aperture 11. On the other hand, as to the secondly described contact, under normal handling the beveled or under portion of the pin head will not glide over its adjacent edge, but even if this came about through excess force followed by extra travel of the pin the latter will still remain locked, becoming no further movable after the head has reached the slot 10, with slight brakeage on the way to resist this superfluous travel because of the upward slope, as later explained, in tab 5, encountered along that course. In any such ultimate position the pin point will merely extend a further distance beyondk the mound 12 equivalent to the additional travel referred to and, of course, will still remain shielded underneath the tab 5.

It will be noted by reference to Fig. 4 that a sufficient portion of inner wall 3 at its free end acts as an intervening layer between the otherwise opposing surface of tab 5 and the outer wall 2. Unlike the resultant contact with an inserted card imparted by a mounted crimped pin, this intervening layer in my device acts as a complete shield between the pin and any card inserted in chamber 4 between the said two walls. It might here be said that, conventionally, this crimped pin is mounted sort of midway of the badge as shown in Austads drawings, and, because of its structure, it could not possibly be located in the interest of economy on any such narrow strip as tab 5 of applicant with resulting benefit of such intervening layer. Yet it might also be observed that even if the pin were opitonally mounted in my device in som chosen position below said tab as in Austad, any such card in chamber 4 would nevertheless remain practically free of frictional contact with said pin. This is because of the bellied portion 15, which automatically is formed in the wake of the pin insertion through slots 10 and 9,

' no matter where those slots may be aligned, and which in turn imperceptibly elevates the pin in its horizontal position from the initial plane in the region of those slots, which otherwise would remain in status quo if designed for the insertion of a crimped pin. It is also to be noted that the bellied portion 15 so tapers off that slot 13 will yet be on an elevated plane, but somewhat closer to the base, which in turn affords suicient space between the plane of said slot and that of said base for an unobstructed overlapping, edgewise, of any revolved portion of the pin head that has snapped into said slot up to the lower level of the pin shank, as shown in Fig. 3, thus insuring a nonslipping and positively locking position of said head. lt is also to be noted by reference to Fig. 3 that because of such horizontal elevation of the pin shank, a very slight hollow results between said shank and the normal base underneath along the distance between the slot 9 and the mound 12, which snugly compensates for the slight depth taken by the usual bite of such pin into the fabric where attached, any other variation nevertheless leading to similar compactness because of the resiliency of the base structure and the narrowing of said hollow to the vanishing point at each end.

As to the imposition on a rear surface of the badge of the novel alignment of parts as disclosed in this device for the mounting of 4a common pin and for the locking and unlocking of same when desired, the elements there' of, consisting of the mound 12, the aperture 11, the horizontal slots 9 and 10, the vertical slot 13, and the mound 14, all can be effected in one stamping operation by a single battery of dies, the mounds 12 and 14 being synchronously created by the mere depression of the sheet material at their location with the aid of slight heatfelectrically applied to the relevant die. At one and the same time the linear path between the slots 9 and Y1t),l to later traversed by theshank of the pin, can be outwardly depressed, with similar heat and an appropriate/fictie in eluded in said battery, to create a linear archway suicient for straight and snug entry ofthe pin through both of these slots,'wi`thout the necessity of a threading or weaving tition for that purpose, thereby reducing considerably the work of the assembler. All this synchronous priming and preparation can be accomplished, as stated, in a single operation without extra expense in time and labor over and above what it takes to stamp out the complementary apertures in a badge designed for the reception of the conventional crimped pin. In connection with such apertures for the crimped pin, it might here be observed that they must be large enough for initial admittance respectively of its hook at one end and of its spiraled spring at the other end, following which, however, these apertures become altogether too large for diametrical accommodation of the wire body alone which ultimately becomes at rest therethrough. This results in a very shaky combination between badge and pin, totally in contrast to the snugly harnessed pin in the instant device, immovable at all times except for operational purpose to be effected by just a sliding movement in a fixed track. Furthermore, under the disclosure made herein with particular reference to the mounting of my pin on tab 5, the force of any accidental or moderate pull on the attached badge would first be resisted by the tension resid` ing at the hinged edge 6, resulting merely in acorresponding angular movement of the tab 5 rearwardly and against that tension, sufficient to overcome or to mitigate that pull on any casual tampering with the badge. Where, however, the pull is deliberate, the pin itself is so strongly moored in its locked position as to overcome, in reasonable bounds, the excess force engendered thereby.

It is obvious from thev foregoing that this pin-fastening device in connection with resilient sheet material such as transparent Celluloid, can be accomplished with similar sheet material of resilient quality, even though nontransparent, Whether either kind is applied to other types of t badges than that herein described or to kindred objects of one or more plies of such material.

While I have shown and described one embodiment of my invention, it is obvious that it is not restricted thereto, but is broad enough to cover all structures that come within the scope of the annexed claims.

Having described my invention, what I claim is:

1. In a badge and pin combination, a badge member consisting of a thin sheet of resilient and transparent material folded transversely intermediate its ends to define an outer and inner wall in confrontation with each other for the reception of a card or the like therebetween for display purpose and a supporting tab, by way of an eX- tended length of said outer wall, inturned along a line parallel with said fold to a plane substantially parallel with that of said outer wall; a straight pin of the common type, having a round-edged head at one end of its shank and a point at the other, with attendant means for removably mounting the same preferably from and along the outer surface of said tab in a pre-set andinterlockable combination adapted for securing said Vbadge on to and flat against any face of a garment or the like; said attendant means consisting of two apertures in said tab, aligned along a normally flat base and of uniform width infinitesimally greater than that of the diameterV of the pin shank, for receiving and slidably channeling said pin over the fixed linear course pre-established thereby; and the said apertures being otherwise so disposed as would induce in their region a slight buckling in said base in the wake of such pin-mounting operation; a hollow mound in said alignment at the farther end from said apertures, drawn to a height above the normal plane of said base, with an opening in its elevation facing the point of said mounted pin, for automatic reception to a position beneath the dome of said mound, of a complementally extended end of the pin shank when slid pointwise, along the normal level of said course, to pin-locked position, regardless of embodiment therewith of any such face material; means by which such lockedposition is automatically effected, consisting of a vertical slot in said alignment eventuating in the outer slope of said buckled regionwhen introduced as aforementioned, 'of a marginal`r proportion designed snugly to house, under tcnsion'otthe t a f surrounding base material, any casually revolved portion of the pinheadwhich, against such tension, has snapped edgewise into said slot up to stoppage Vby the base-abutment of said shank, upon entry of such shank through the opening in said mound to the extentrand in the manner aforementioned.

2.v In a badge and pin combination, a badge member` parallel with said fold to a plane substantially parallelV with that of said outer Wall; a straight pin of the common type, having a round-edged head at one end of its shank and Ya point at the other, Ywith attendant meansv for removably mounting the same preferably from and along theroutersurface of said tab in a pre-set and interlockable Vcombination adapted for securing said badge on'to and fiat against any face of a garment or the like; said attendant means consisting of two apertures in said tab, aligned along a normally flat base and of uniform width infinitesimally greater than'that of the diameter Y of the pin shank, for receiving and slidably channeling said pin over the fixed linear course pre-established thereby; and the said apertures being otherwise so disposed as would induce in their region a slight buckling in said base in the wake of such pin-mounting operation; a hol-v low mound in said alignment at the farther end from said apertures, drawn to a height above the normal plane of said base, with an opening in its elevation facing thepoint of said mounted pin, for automatic reception to-a.v position beneath `,the dome of said mound, of a complementally extended end ofthe pin shank when slid pointwise, along the normal level of said course, topin-locked position, regardless of embodiment therewith of any such face material; means lby which such locked positionis automatically effected,consisting of a vertical slot in said alignment eventuating in the outer slope of said buckled region when introduced as aforementioned, of a marginal proportion designed snugly to house, under tension-of the surrounding base material, any casually revolved portion of the pinheadwhich, against such tension, has snapped edgewise into said slot up to stoppage bythe base-abutment of said shank, upon entry of such shank through the opening in said mound to the extent and in themanner aforementioned; and,` meansin said alignment located beyond said vertical slot at the closer end to said apertures for preventing said pin from accidentally emerging from said pre-set combination upon liberation thereof from such locked position.

3. In a badge and pin combination, a badge vmember consisting [o f a thin sheet of resilient material folded transversely intermediate its ends to define a panel for integration therewith of readable matter on either side thereof for display purpose, that in the rear depending on the transparency of said material, and a tab vhinged rearwardly along the line of said fold to a plane substantially parallel with that of said panel; astraight pin of the common type, having a round-edged head at one end of its shank and a point at the other, with attendant means for removably mounting the same preferably from and along the outer surface of said tab in a pre-set and interlockable combination adapted for securing said badge on to and flat against any face of a garment or the like; said attendant means consisting of twov apertures in said tab, aligned along a normally flat base and of uniform width infinitesimally greater than that of the diameter ofthe pin shank, for receiving and slid-2.

ably channeling said-pin over the fixed linear course pre-established therebyyand the said apertures b'eingjv otherwise so-disposed as 'would induce in theirreginf tsllightV buckling in said basev in: the wake of suchV pinmounting operation; ahollow mound in said alignment at the farther end from said apertures, drawn to a height above the normal plane of said base, with an opening in its elevationV facing the point of said mounted pin, for automatic reception to a position beneath the dome of said mound, of a complementally extended end of the pin shank when slid pointwise, along the normal level of said course, to pin-locked position, regardless of embodiment therewith of any such face material; means by which such locked position is automatically effected, consisting of a vertical slot in said alignment eventuating the outer slope of said buckled region when introduced as aforementioned, of a marginal proportion designed snugly to house, under tension of the surrounding base material, any casually revolved portion of the pinhead which, against such tension, has snapped edgewise into said slot up to stoppage by the base-abutment of said shank, upon entry of such shank through the opening in said mound to the extent and in the manner aforementioned.

4. In a badge and pin combination, a badge member consisting of a thin sheet of vresilient material folded transversely intermediate its ends to define a panel for integration therewith of readable matter on either side thereof for display purpose, that in the rear depending on the transparency of said material, and a tab hinged rearwardly along the line of said fold to a plane substantially parallel with that of said panel; astraight pin of the common type, having a round-edged head at one end of its shank and a point at the other, with attendant means for removably mounting the same preferably from and along the outer surface of said tab in a pre-set and interlockable combination adapted for securing said badge on to and flat against any face of a garment or the like; said attendant means consisting of two apertures in said tab, aligned along a normally at base and of uniform Width infinitesimally greater than that of the diameter of the pin shank, for receiving and slidably channeling said pin over the fixed linear course pre-established thereby; and the said apertures being otherwise so disposed as would induce in their region a slight buckling in said Vbase in the wake of such pinmounting operation; a hollow mound in said alignment at the farther end from said apertures, drawn to Va height above the normal plane of said base, with an opening in its elevation facing the point of said mounted pin, for automatic reception to a position beneath the d'om'e ofsaid mound, of a complementally extended end of the pin shank when slid pointwise, along the normal level of said course, to pin-locked position, regardless of embodiment therewith of any such face material; means by which such locked position is automatically effected, consisting of a vertical slot in said alignment Y eventuating in the outer slope of said buckled region when introduced as aforementionedVof a `marginal proportion designed snugly to'house, under tension of the surrounding base material, any casually `revolved portion of the pinhead which, against such tension, has snapped e'dgewise intolsaid slot up to stoppage by the base-abutment of said shank, upon entry ofsuch shank through th'e opening in said mound to the extent and in themanner aforementioned; and means in said alignment located beyond said vertical slot at the closer end to said apertures for `preventing said pin from accidentally emerging from said pre-set combination upon liberation thereof 'from such locked position.

5. In a'badge and 'pin combination, a badge member Vcc'tsisting of a thin .panel of resilient material for integration therewith of readable matter on either lside thereof for 'display purpose, thatin the -rear depending on the transparency of said material; a straightpin lof tliegcommon t'ype, having a round-edged-head 'at one end of its shank and apoint at the other, with attendant means for removably mounting the same on said panel in a pre-set and interlockable combination adapted for securing said badge on to and at against any face of a garment or the like; said attendant means consisting of two apertures in said panel, aligned preferably at the top along a normally at base and of uniform width infinitesimally greater than that of the diameter of the pin shank, for receiving and slidably channeling said pin over the fixed linear course pre-established thereby; and the said apertures being otherwise so disposed as would induce in their region a slight buckling in said base in the wake of such pin-mounting operation; a hollow mound in said alignment at the farther end from said apertures, drawn to a height above the normal plane of said base, with an opening in its elevation facing the point of said mounted pin, for automatic reception to a position beneath the dome of said mound, of a complementally extended end of the pin shank when slid pointwise, along the normal level of said course, to pin-locked position, regardless of embodiment therewith of any such face material; means by which such locked positionris automatically effected, consisting of a vertical slot in said alignment eventuating in the outer slope of said buckled region when introduced as aforementioned, of a marginal proportion designed snugly to house, under tension of the surrounding base material, any casually revolved portion of the pinhead which, against such tension, has snapped edgewise into said slot up to stoppage by the base-abutment of said shank, upon entry of such shank through the opening in said mound to the extent and in the manner aforementioned.

6. ln a badge and pin combination, a badge member consisting of a thin panel of resilient material for integration therewith of readable matter on either side thereof for display purpose, that in the rear depending on the transparency of said material; a straight pin of the common type, having a round-edged head at one end of its shank and a point at the other, with attendant means for removably mounting the same on said panel in a pre-set and interlockable combination adapted for securing said badge on to and at against any face of a garment or the like; said attendant means consisting of two apertures in said panel, aligned preferably at the top along a normally flat base and of uniform width infinitimally greater than that of the diameter of the pin shank, for receiving and slidably mounting said pin over the xed linear course pre-established thereby; and the said apertures being otherwise so disposed as would induce in their region a slight buckling in said base in the wake of such pin-mounting operation; a hollow mound in said alignment at the farther end from said apertures, drawn to a height above the normal plane of said base, with an opening in its elevation facing the point of said mounted pin, for automatic reception to a position beneath the dome of saidV mound, of a complementally extended end of the pin shank when slid pointwise, along the normal level of said course, to pin-locked position, regardless of embodiment therewith of any such face material; means by which such locked position is automatically effected, consisting of a vertical slot in said alignment eventuating in the outer slope of said buckled region when introduced as aforementioned, of a marginal proportion designed snugly to house, undertension of the surrounding base material, any casually revolved portion of the pinhead which, against such tension, has snapped edgewise into said slotup to stoppage by the base-abutment of said shank, upon entry of such shank through the opening in said mound to the extent and in the manner aforementioned; and means in said alignment located beyond said vertical `slot :at ,thev closer end to said aperturesA for preventanemia 9 ing said pin from accidentally emerging `from said pre-set combination upon liberation thereof from such locked position.

7. In a badge and pin combination as described in claim 6 wherein a linear depression is provided in direct communication between the said two apertures as an archway sucient for the straight and snug entry of the pin therethrough in the course of the mounting operation therein described.

UNITED STATES PATENTS Toy May 24, 1921 v `Flood Aug. 8, 1933 Collins Mar. 31, 1936 Komorous Nov. 18, 1952 Austad Nov. 8, 1955 Barger Jan. 7, 1958 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 2,930,154

March .29rl 1 Louis Wo Rosen It is hereby" certified that error appears in the-printed specificati( of the above numbered patent requiring correction and that the said Lette] Patent should read as corrected below.

Column 2Y line 58,l for "derivation" Signed and sealed this 27th day of September 1960..

(SEAL) Attest:

KARL Ha AXLINE Commissioner of Patents 

